A beam of bright light can be required for certain applications. A laser can be utilized to provide such light, but laser light is both coherent and monochromatic, which can lead to the light interfering with itself and giving rise to a phenomenon of “laser speckle”. Laser speckle can be problematic with imaging applications, such as Schlieren photography, and can be difficult to remove and/or minimize. A further problem may be that an experiment may desirably include use of light of a particular wavelength; however, an available laser may emit light of a different wavelength. Still further, lasers may be very expensive.
Xenon arc lamps can be substitutes for lasers in certain scenarios. However, a xenon arc lamp generates white light; accordingly, if some other wavelength is to be employed in an experimental setting, then the light emitted by the xenon arc lamp must be filtered, which may result in inefficiencies and/or cause light coupling issues. Moreover, xenon arc lights cannot be pulsed.